{"415541":{"#nid":"415541","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Educator finds fulfillment in bridging carpet industry, community, and workforce development needs","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EDid you know that 85 percent of all carpet manufactured in the United States is produced in Georgia, and more than 70 percent comes from the Dalton region?\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBrian Cooksey, director of operations training and development at Shaw Industries, has made it his mission to show younger generations how different the industry is today from years past and that there are numerous exciting and challenging career choices in manufacturing. These include career opportunities people wouldn\u2019t immediately connect with being part of manufacturing: chemists, interior designers, and advanced robotics programmers, among others.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt\u2019s not your grandfather\u2019s carpet mill,\u201d he says, as he takes visitors through one of Shaw\u2019s plants. \u201cIt\u2019s an advanced manufacturing facility.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECooksey is the Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership\u2019s (GaMEP) June Face of Manufacturing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EManufacturing \u2014 which employs 365,000 across Georgia \u2014 remains a critical sector in the Peach State\u2019s economy. The Faces of Manufacturing initiative is designed to show how individuals such as Cooksey and the companies where they work keep the communities in which they operate strong and thriving economically and socially.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cGrowing up in a small town that was supported by two large manufacturing plants, it was clear that manufacturing jobs provided for families and helped support my community,\u201d he said. \u201cI found that to be the same in Dalton and in Shaw.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EKeeping the industry strong explains why Cooksey is committed to the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative, where he serves on the workforce development and steering committees for regional efforts in Northwest Georgia.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIMCP\u2019s goal is to sustain the region\u2019s floorcovering industry and keep it competitive. It tackles workforce development by assessing skills gaps and creating training curriculums, expanding supplier networks, and making operational improvements.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe floorcovering industry is the backbone of our community,\u201d Cooksey said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECooksey\u2019s job is twofold. He is charged with keeping the carpet and flooring giant\u2019s current workforce ready and nimble for its needs. He also leads several key initiatives to get the next generation of potential workers interested in manufacturing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn 2010, he led efforts to create the Design, Engineering, and Manufacturing Camp for middle school students in Whitfield County. The camp, which has steadily grown from 24 in its inaugural year to this summer\u2019s 125, shows youngsters how to solve problems and to think creatively and independently, but also to work as part of a team.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe kids get to design and build racing cars, carpet squares, and rockets using the same machines, tools, and software used in manufacturing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECooksey, the child of educators, also led a team in writing the Mechatronics Pathway curriculum, which is geared to high school students. The program, which has served as a model and is being adopted across Georgia, connects students\u2019 interests and skills with manufacturers\u2019 needs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe program also provides high school students who are interested in manufacturing with college credit, scholarships, internships, and apprenticeships.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cStudents need to experience a manufacturing plant firsthand and see if it\u2019s something they want to do,\u201d Cooksey said. \u201cIt\u2019s about shifting the image that kids have about manufacturing, and in doing so, we will change the game in workforce development for our communities and Georgia.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy P\u00e9ralte C. Paul\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Each month the Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership profiles Georgians who are involved in manufacturing."}],"uid":"28137","created_gmt":"2015-06-17 09:34:19","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:18:37","author":"P\u00e9ralte Paul","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-06-17T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-06-17T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"415601":{"id":"415601","type":"image","title":"Brian Cooksey - GaMEP\u0027s June Face of Manufacturing","body":null,"created":"1449254245","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 18:37:25","changed":"1475895152","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:52:32","alt":"Brian Cooksey - GaMEP\u0027s June Face of Manufacturing","file":{"fid":"202507","name":"custom_thumbnail_brian_cooksey.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/custom_thumbnail_brian_cooksey_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/custom_thumbnail_brian_cooksey_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":88370,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/custom_thumbnail_brian_cooksey_0.jpg?itok=OHv4_Dv4"}}},"media_ids":["415601"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/facesofmanufacturing.com\/portfolio\/brian-cooksey\/","title":"Brian Cooksey"},{"url":"http:\/\/facesofmanufacturing.com\/","title":"Faces of Manufacturing"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"139","name":"Business"}],"keywords":[{"id":"129111","name":"Brian Cooksey"},{"id":"121581","name":"Faces of Manufacturing"},{"id":"16331","name":"GaMEP"},{"id":"169732","name":"Shaw Industries"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"106361","name":"Business and Economic Development"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EFor media inquiries contact:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELaura Diamond\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech Media Relations\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:laura.diamond@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Elaura.diamond@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EFor more information about GaMEP contact:\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EKatie Takacs\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGaMEP Marketing Manager\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:katie.takacs@innovate.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ekatie.takacs@innovate.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["peralte.paul@comm.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}